Watch Dogs: Legion takes place in London and our new video is showing off how well Ubisoft has translated the capital's famous landmarks into the game.
To give you some background, Watch Dogs: Legion is a game about uniting citizens under the common goal of fighting back against the establishment. Everything takes place in a near-future version of London, which is completely open and explorable – and extremely faithful to the real city.
Legion tasks you with recruiting the people of London, teaming up with Stormzy (yep, that Stormzy) and fighting back against a paramilitary weaponized against its very citizens by the corporate elite, who use drones, militias, and private information against those inhabiting London.
We hopped on (read: stole) a big red bus and drove around the city, checking out the Houses of Parliament, the London Eye, Southbank, Piccadilly Circus and more, leaving us more than impressed with the uncanny virtual version.
First, we stood on Westminster Bridge and took a look at Big Ben. You might be aware that the real-world version of the Elizabeth Tower is currently under construction, but since Legion is set in the future it's easy to give them a pass.
The two most impressive locations in the game though are by far Buckingham Palace and Tower Bridge. The former shows you the mall which leads all the way down through St Jame's Park to the front of the palace while the latter gives you an excellent vista of the entire London skyline, showing off the Shard, City Hall and more.
In our review of Watch Dogs: Legion, however, we were weren't entirely convinced by the game as a whole - specifically when it comes to one of its biggest features: the ability to recruit any NPC to join your ranks.
"What Legion doesn’t do so well is provide depth to the citizens making up the faceless army. Each character has their own uses, but Legion instructs you to use them more as tools to overcome problems and less actual people whose plight you can empathize with," our review reads.
The gameplay is fun, there's no denying that, but we think that the overall experience is middling. "There are genuine fun and experimentation to be had in figuring out how best to assault a stronghold or how to rescue a hostage, but the endless list of auto-generated citizens feels lacking in human emotion and depth."
Despite these criticisms, it is a treat to explore this version of London and to see the work and attention to detail put into re-creating the city so lovingly and accurately.
